The Port Deal and Race was it a factor at all(Of Course Not)

The Emirates Economist | 03/12/06 | bayourant

[bayourant]

Did Race play a role in the Port Deal discussions? The very charge is met by the likes of Sean Hannity and others with Righteous Indigination. In fact, to mention it makes you the true problem. Mark Levin in fact called a MAjor General a dirtbag over that charge. The below cartoons may be an issue now in the UAE. They are not cartoons about that ole darn prophet however. THere will be no boycotts over these but remember still they dont help things. The cartoonist just give us what we want sometimes. From MSNBC the following cartoon. There were many others that through the glory of the net are available to all.

[beyond the sea]

LOL

[Cannoneer No. 4]

Read A Major Victory for Al Qaeda

GEN Abizaid is an Arab-American who understands better than anybody on this board how the ports kerfluffle has affected logistics in his Area of Responsibility.

[Wolfie]

Beats me how this could happen. Its almost as if someone has been telling us to be afraid of the Arab world for the last 5 years.

[beyond the sea]

No fighting.................. ;-)

Harvey Logan: Guns or Knives?

Butch Cassidy: Neither?

Harvey Logan: Pick.

Butch Cassidy: I don't want to shoot with you Harvey.

Harvey Logan: [Draws a big knife] Anything you say, Butch. [Butch walks over to Sundance]

Butch Cassidy: [in a low voice] Maybe there's a way to make a profit in this. Bet on Logan.

Sundance Kid: I would, but who'd bet on you?

Harvey Logan: Sundance, when we're done, and he's dead, you're welcome to stay.

Butch Cassidy: [low voice, to Sundance] Listen, I don't mean to be a sore loser, but when it's done, if I'm dead, kill him.

Sundance Kid: [low voice to Butch] Love to. [waves to Harvey and smiles]

Butch Cassidy: No, no, not yet. Not until me and Harvey get the rules straightened out.

Harvey Logan: Rules? In a knife fight? No rules. [Butch immediately kicks Harvey in the groin]

Butch Cassidy: Well, if there aint' going to be any rules, let's get the fight started. Someone count. 1,2,3 go.

Sundance Kid: [quickly] 1,2,3, go. [Butch knocks Harvey out]

Flat Nose Curry: I was rooting for you all along, Butch

Butch Cassidy: Well, thank you, Flatnose. That's what sustained me in my time of trouble.

[tiredoflaundry]

Dang, all the fun happens when I'm not around.

[bvw]

Okay, on that poll, when one answers "Bad" does that mean that (1) seling the terminals to DPW was bad or (2) that failing to sell the terminals to DPW was bad?

[bvw]

Did you make a field trip? For something as complex in operation as a port, a field trip helps. I've been to parts of ports, but have toured the whole shebang. Would be helpful to all to have some in-depth documentary of port operations. Starting from the gantry operator's break room and working out.

[bvw]

You're a good guy, that's for sure, to do all that work on someone else's behalf.

[LibLieSlayer]

I have conversed with bayourant this past week, and I feel you are correct in how you described events. I hope Jim reinstates his membership today, as I think he will realize that what he heard and what Mark said were misunderstood. After all, a bag of dirt, and a ball of mud are about the same thing. It was the way the phrased was used that led to confusion.

LLS

[muawiyah]

Look, giving up "control of our ports" would require several things no one has proposed. First off, we'd need to pull the Customs guys out of there. Then you'd need to disband the Coast Guard and sink their boats. Local and state police forces would need to be told to stay out, and so on and so forth.

Control of ports was never at stake. In fact, none of this had anything to do with ports ~ just some derricks that hoist international containers on or off boats.

So, again, what is it you are trying to say?

[Miss Marple]

You need to read the whole thread before you comment. What seems to have happened is that bayourant misunderstood what Levin said, and then when Levin posted as holdonnow, bayourant didn't realize that was who he was talking to. Apparently Jim Robinson notified him in freepmail, but he didn't retract his statement quickly enough. Of course, h may not have seen the freepmail if he was simply posting and refreshing on this thread.

At any rate, the transcript of the show in question was posted, and it is easy to see how a large misunderstanding occurred. If people on all sides had waited for the transcript, perhaps a lot of insults and hard feelings and a freeper being banned could have been avoided.

I am sorry to see this whole episode, as it all could have been avoided.

[BlackbirdSST]

Ok, they're stupid, you're brilliant. You've demonstrated that.

SMAAAAACK! LMAO! Blackbird.

[zook]

"Its almost as if someone has been telling us to be afraid of the Arab world for the last 5 years."

It doesn't look that way from where I sit. The President has made it very clear that we are at war with radical Islamists, not the Arab world. We have good relations with UAE, Jordan, and a few other Arab nations.

There is no doubt in my mind that a significant part of the opposition to the port deal was fueled by a combination of Xenophobia and ethnic/racial prejudice. One small indicator of this was the nature of the political cartoons I saw in my local paper--Arab "sheiks" with big noses and turbans looming over or being booted out of New York, for example.

[fooman]

Since english was not his first language, I can now see how he thought that the mudd = dirt.

My mom would have thought so.

[Elyse]

The more I listened to the tape, the clearer it became to me just who you were calling a mudball and that it definitely wasn't the General.

I totally agree with you. I had to listen to the tape 3 times before I really understood what he was saying. I think it was a total misunderstanding on bayourant's part. You can clearly see on the live thread that he said what he thought he heard and no one listening at the time told him that he misunderstood, so he really believed he was right. He didn't have it on tape to replay.

I've been in debates with bayourant on the board on other issues and I fully believe if he had really known that holdonnow was Mark Levin and if holdonnow had explained exactly what he said that bayourant would have apologized for the misunderstanding. I think it's a shame that bayourant has been banned.

[zook]

"Is the failed port deal bad for America?"

Whoever worded that question really needs to take a course in survey research.

[sono]

Mark Levin ... not Mark Levin ... of Landmark Legal fame. Men in Black is a great book for anyone who wishes to understand the venom behind the Justice confirmation hearings.

[spectre]

Thank you.

sw

[beyond the sea]

At any rate, the transcript of the show in question was posted, and it is easy to see how a large misunderstanding occurred. If people on all sides had waited for the transcript, perhaps a lot of insults and hard feelings and a freeper being banned could have been avoided.

I appreciate you telling me this, M. M.. I went through about 250 posts early this morning, but had to stop reading before seeing the actual transcript. I'm sorry I didn't see it.

One thing that really makes me crazy is a false accusation. God knows, I have had a little bit of that here from one particular poster.

I hope that if "bayourant" was at all accurate with his claim, I hope that he is reinstated. I still haven't seen the actual transcript. I wonder if you could point me to the post where it may be.

Again, thank you very much for your post. If I jumped to incorrect conclusions, it is mostly because of my very high esteem for F. Lee Levin. I just didn't and don't think he said such a thing.

But, there never really is any real excuse to falsely claim something about someone that is not true.

Thanks again.

[zook]

After reading most of this thread, I think I might have misinterpreted your remark about "someone telling us to be afraid...." If so, sorry!!

And, for what it's worth, unless there's something I don't know, I think bayourant's error should be forgiven and he should be reinstated.